Gone are the days of strolling into your local BlockBuster to pick up the newest releases (if any are left). The way to get the newest games now is to, well, buy it at retail price. This is what I’ve done for years since BlockBuster has been wiped out excluding a few stores here and there. It’s expensive, and if I end up not liking the game then I’m stuck with it. Sure, I can go to GameStop and trade it in within 30 days of its initial release to receive half of my money back in store credit, or I can sell it on the local classifieds for $10-20 cheaper than what I paid. But I think I’m getting close to being done with the same old “oh look, (insert game title) is coming out so I better set aside $60 for it.” I’m going back to my roots that is renting!

Supposedly this is one of the last BlockBuster stores left, located in Miami, FL.

What You’re Probably Thinking

“What is this? 2005? Who rents games when you can own it by buying them from a store or even download them from the PSN Store or Xbox Marketplace and not even worry about a disc at all?” While it is nice owning the game and not having to worry about sending it back or returning it by a certain time, my taste in games has been changing so drastically lately that I don’t feel as comfortable paying full price on a new game anymore. I can’t even think of all the times I’ve bought a game on release day, brought it home, realized I had something else to do, and put it on top of my stack of games and forget about it. I’ve kept games in shrink wrap for months. All because they hype of buying the game day one gave me that satisfactory feeling of “cool, now I own it and can play it whenever I want!” However, that doesn’t always happen. Renting is more practical in my situation. Now if I get a game and I don’t feel like playing it at the moment or I feel as if my excitement overpowered my true taste in the game/genre, I can send it back and get a new game from my queue a few days later.

“But if you want a new release you aren’t going to get them day one, doesn’t that bother you?” Honestly, it doesn’t bother me as much as it used to. I always insisted on having games pre-ordered on Amazon or have my money down at GameStop to pick it up on release day (or even midnight depending on how stoked I was). GameFly is my new method of getting games on or close to release day, because I’m paying a fraction of the cost of a brand new game to have it maybe 2 days late at most. I’ve come to a point in my life where I really can’t sit down on a Tuesday release night and sink hours into a new game. The longer I wait, knowing it’s coming my way, the more excited I’ll be.

“C’mon, there HAS to be exceptions to this, right?” Of course. So far for 2018 I’m already suckered into (meaning I’ve already pre-ordered them) Red Dead Redemption 2 and FarCry 5, no ifs, ands, or buts. Red Dead Redemption was one of my favorite games from the last console generation, and the trailers at E3 for FarCry 5 made me say out loud “yeah, I’m totally gonna get that day one.” I can go into much deeper detail on why I’m getting those games day one but I’ll save that for when it gets closer to their release dates. However I’m sure there will be others this year that’ll steal money right out of my wallet as soon as I see them. GameFly is going to save me time and money on games like Monster Hunter: World which I previewed last week where I haven’t even played a single game from the series but I am very interested in it based on what I’ve seen and read.

One of the most anticipated games of 2018 that was announced at E3 2017

It Will Be Worth The Money, I’m Sure Of It

Despite saving tens of dollars on a $60 game that I may or may not like, I plan on taking advantage of the higher level of service that allows me to have two games out at a time. I’ve got Monster Hunter: World holding a spot so I can get it when close to when it comes out and then I have Ghost Recon: Wildlands on its way right now. I hadn’t even heard of it until I heard some feedback from the crew at Cheap Ass Gamer on their podcast, and it caught my attention enough to throw it on my GameFly queue. I didn’t even have to contemplate whether it’ll be worth buying at $40+. Hell, I didn’t even have to drive to a store to buy it! It’s on its way, and it’s given me a feeling of relief knowing that I’m not obligated to keep it or to bite a $40 bullet that I might regret later on. Also, with having the option to have two games out at a time, I’ll save one of those spots for MH:W and continue to play whichever game I have out from the other spot.